Video Introduction from
Dr. James Pappas
Dean of the
College of Liberal Studies
6:46 
LSTD 3423 - Chemistry for Changing Times
In this course, you will learn how to relate chemistry to your everyday life. The course will cover various topics that are useful to people and relate to the field of chemistry. The student will write summaries over each reading and end the course by writing a final paper that covers the ethical issues that come up throughout the readings.
LSTD 3453 - Physics for Poets
The goal of this course is to introduce non-science students to the conceptual development and philosophical implications of some aspects of physics with a minimum amount of mathematics. The topics covered this semester will include motion, energy conservation laws, electricity, optics, atoms, the nucleus, special relativity, and elementary particles. A solid foundation in high school algebra is required for entry into this course. This text provides a historical context for the development of physics. Scientific concepts are tied to the intellectual climate of the time from which they arise, and to the personal characteristics and methods of inquiry of the scientists who develop them.
LSTD 4253 - Culture and Science
This course will investigate the relations between science and culture as it has developed in the modern world, from the time of Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein, early in the nineteenth century, to the present day. Among the historical topics we will investigate will be the rise of modern science, skeptical rationalism, and empiricism since the Enlightenment, and their conflict with the faith-based knowledge and inquiry that had dominated in Europe in preceding centuries; the perceived conflict between scientific reason and feelings in the Romantic period; and the attack on scientific “social engineeringrd” from Modernist culture in the early twentieth century.
Our more contemporary concerns will include issues of science literacy and where people get their information about science, the nature of science as a process, and the nature and importance of evidence in science, the public perception of science, and the ways science and culture clash in modern society. Is it possible for science and culture to be compatible in today's world?
LSTD 4263 - Environment and Philosophy
The purpose of this course is to help students understand the application of ethical thinking to environmental issues. Taking the course will help students grasp and evaluate ethical justifications given for environmental policy proposals.
LSTD 4423 - The Role of Genetic Engineering: Past, Present, and Future
It is likely that no other single issue will affect the future of your grandchildren than genetic engineering. This course will examine the role of gene manipulation in the past, present, and future. It will begin with descriptions of genes, evolution and fitness. Unit One will conclude with your own exploration of mate choice and how that relates to gene manipulation. Unit Two will address the history of genetic engineering, its impact on, and the ultimate fate of civilizations. You will conclude unit two with an exploration of the fate of your state in the absence of genetic engineering. In the Third Unit you will explore modern genetic engineering and its role in crops, livestock, and humans. This section will conclude with your locating a genetically engineered object (food or human) in your community and explore the role of this object. Unit Four will address the scientific and political future of genetic engineering. You will conclude this section with a discussion of "Major Nelson's" syndrome and its consequences for genetic engineering.
LSTD 4433 - Satellite Imagery
To introduce students to remote sensing systems and illustrate their utility in a diverse range of applications. Students will become equipped to understand and apply the appropriate aspects of remote sensing technology to a variety of disciplines.
LSTD 4443 - Weather and Climate
An introduction to energy balance, temperature, atmospheric moisture, cloud formation, static stability, precipitation mechanisms, winds, mid-latitude and severe storms, weather forecasting and climate. The course is designed for students who are not scientists.
LSTD 4453 – Stellar Evolution
The very elements required for life have astrophysical origins. To understand the life cycle of the stars in some sense allows us to understand the origin of our planet and of ourselves. We begin our study with the intense study of our local star, the Sun. It will serve as the benchmark that we will compare all other stars to, learning how scientists take the star’s “vital signs” and classify them into types. We will examine the entire life cycle of a star from its birth in the vast complex clouds of the interstellar medium to its eventual end as an exotic stellar corpse. By tracking the stars evolutionary cycle, we then discover the origins of many of our naturally occurring elements. As a second focus, the mythology associated with the Sun and other stars will be examined in each unit.
LSTD 4953 - Study in Depth
This course is designed to assist you in the completion of your study in depth paper, the capstone experience in the Bachelor of Liberal Studies Program. The course will focus on developing your thesis statement, locating and evaluating references, writing and organizing your paper, and putting your paper into its final form, including the list of references cited. This course is faculty driven with full flexibility for the director of the study in depth to manage the task in accordance with the subject undertaken.
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